


Adopted

by Flameroyalty



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Adoption, Child Neglect, Dad!Gavin, Dad!Nines, Fluff, I think thats what this is called, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Past Child Abuse, Kid Fic, Local Detectives adopt little girl but they're not gay, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, This has no real plot im sorry, spoiler: they're gay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-27
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-07-21 05:35:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19996705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flameroyalty/pseuds/Flameroyalty
Summary: “What the hell was that- Oh god damn it. I mean.” Gavin approaches, “Hey there little girl. What are you doing here?”“Her name is Abbey. She enjoys reading and grapes.” Nines explains.





	1. Found

**Author's Note:**

> This is based on an ask @/thegodbucky got on tumblr because I saw it and I couldn't help myself. There's more written but I need more time to develop that stuff.

“Don’t worry, my mommy said she’s coming back soon.” the little girl said upon seeing him. It sounded rehearsed, practiced, scripted. 

She was sitting on the floor, which was a danger in itself. A layer of dust and grime is caked onto the tiles of the kitchen. A noticeable amount of broken glass is scattered across the floor. Drawers and cabinets were open or half broken off their hinges, all empty. Table leaning, covered in plates with rotted food stuck to them.

It’s difficult to tell how long this child has been sitting here. Her clothes are dirty and torn in places. She shows signs of dehydration and malnourishment. Splotches of dirt smeared on her cheeks and hands. She’s lucky it hadn’t started to get cold yet. 

Nines wasn’t sure exactly what he was meant to do. Of course, he had the protocol programmed but it didn’t feel right. He leans down to get closer to her field of vision. Her lack of aversion to him was interesting. 

“Hello. Do you have a name?” He asks her. 

She continues to flip through the worn pages of the book in front of her, “Abbey.”

“Hello Abbey, my name is Nines. I’m an RK900. Do you know where your parents are?”

She shakes her head. He watches as she stares at the photos instead of the words.

‘Do you remember when they said they’d come back?” he asks, hoping for anything he can work with. 

“Mom said soon.”

“When did they leave?” She shrugs. “How many times have you slept since they left?”

She looks up at him. A confused look crosses her face, thinking. She holds up 2 fingers then goes back to her book. 

He knows he’s supposed to call for Protective Services. There’s a standard he’s expected to meet. He had a job to do. But looking at this little girl, no way older than 6 years old, in such a state was stopping him in his tracks. 

Quietly, he hears her struggling to read the words of her story. Sounding out the letters. She’s not doing terribly for her age. 

It’s barely a struggle to push past the red wall and scoop her into his arms. He picks up the book as well and opens it so they can both see it. Holding her in one hand, he guides her along with his finger as he reads out loud. 

“The fox walked in the forest. She was looking for her friends. She had many treats to share with them. Now you try.” 

He helps her along through the short paragraph. Correcting her pronunciation as needed. She looks ecstatic to finally comprehend the only piece of entertainment she’s had in days. He finds himself sharing a portion of her excitement.

“Abbey, are you hungry?” he asks, knowing the answer. She nods. “Well I’m going to have to take you back to the police station. Have you ever been to one of those?”

She shakes her head, gripping the book to her chest. She feels so small in his arms. 

He starts walking through the house, looking for anything that might belong to her, “We’ll have something for you to eat there. Do you have a favourite food?”

“Grapes.” she states with certainty. 

He finds what he assumes is her bedroom, “Well I’m not sure we’ll have any of those but I may be able to convince my partner to get us some on the way.”

“Hey Plastic, what’s taking so damn long?”

Speak of the devil. 

“Detective, if you could join me in the back bedroom please?” He shouts loud enough for Gavin to hear, careful not to startle Abbey. 

Her bedroom is relatively bare, little to learn from. He opens a few dresser drawers, pulling out some cleaner clothes. He hands them to their owner to hold onto. He also finds a stuffed bear that could use a few rounds in a washing machine. He’s cautious to let her touch it but the second she spots it, she’s reaching for it. 

“Zazzy!” she shouts when he picks it up. 

“What the hell was that- Oh god damn it. I mean.” Gavin approaches, “Hey there little girl. What are you doing here?”

“Her name is Abbey. She enjoys reading and grapes.” Nines explains, smiling like they share a secret at her as he speaks.

“And Zazzy!” She holds out the bear for Gavin to inspect.

“My apologies, of course. And Zazzy.” He corrects himself.

“Well Abbey, ever been in the back of a police car?” Gavin asks, in a cheerful tone Nines isn’t familiar with. She shakes her head at him. He laughs, “Probably won’t be the last time either. Lets go!”

Sure he’s gotten as many valuables from the room as he can, he follows his partner out of the house. He gently places her on her feet and opens the back door of the car for her. She crawls in, neatly stacking her belongings beside her, but keeping the bear close. 

Once the door is closed, he meets Gavin’s eyes over the top of the car. 

“What the hell Nines?”

“Her name is Abigail Darren. 5 years old. Suffering from neglect and possible abandonment. According to her, it’s been 2 days, possibly more. She’s in rough shape.”

“Didn’t look like it, all snuggled up in your arms.”

“I was providing comfort to an abused child. Would you prefer I had kept at a distance?”

“No, you idiot. I was- Nevermind. Just get in the damn car.”

“We have to stop at the store."

“What? Why?”

“I promised her grapes.”

Gavin rests his forehead against the car, “I hate you.”

“If you like, you can take her to the station and I will meet you there with the fruit. Though I suspect she won’t be as comfortable with just you.”

He’s started banging his head rhythmically against the metal, “Just get in the car Nines.”

He complies. His partner enters as well. The cruiser starts up and Gavin adjusts the mirror so he can see the backseat. Nines holds off correcting the action. 

“Hold onto your seat Abbey, we’re heading off on an adventure for grapes.”

“Yay!” She cheers as they start driving.

* * *

He's sat with Abbey while they watched Nines argue with the CPS workers in Fowler’s office. Her feet hanging off the edge of his desk while she pops grapes in her mouth one at a time. He looks at his powdered sugar covered fingers from his doughnut. Somehow he was being outclassed by a 5 year old. 

She’d been changed into the clothes Nines grabbed for her. At least these ones weren’t ripped to shreds. Some color was starting to come back to her face. She refused to let them take her bear from her to wash it. 

“He looks mad.” She says. 

Gavin’s surprised she was able to tell. It took him months to figure out Nines’ minor facial features.

“Yeah, but not at you. Don’t worry.” He reassures her.

“Who is he talking to?”

He’s lucky they had to go over this kind of training, otherwise he’d be completely lost, “Well you see. They’re people whose job it is to keep kids like you safe.”

“Then why is he mad?”

“Because he doesn’t think they’re very good at their job.”

It was the simplest way of telling that Nines refused to let her go into foster care knowing the statistics. Gavin isn’t sure how this little thing managed to make Nines attached to her so quickly when he’s been trying for so long.

“What’s your job?” she asks. 

“I catch bad guys.”

“Do you like it?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

Years of tragic backstory wasn’t what this kid wanted to hear. He taps her nose softly with his pastry leaving a spot of white dust, “The free food.”

She laughs and suddenly he gets it. What made Nines care so badly. The light hearted giggle as if her world is completely normal. Like she wasn't probably about to be shipped off to some home with a bunch of other kids. He understands why she doesn’t belong there with the other "unwanted" kids.


	2. Wanted

“Reed, may I talk to you in private?” Nines asks.

“Yeah sure.” Gavin turns to Abbey, “Officer Abbey, Officer Zaz, do you think you can handle this case alone for a minute?”

She giggles, “Yes!”

“Good. No solving it without me.” 

She shakes her head, smile wide. He snags one of her grapes and pops it in his mouth. She lets out a gasp and he throws her a wink. Nines leads them far enough away from the girl that she couldn’t hear but they could still keep an eye on her. 

“Your proficiency in handling Abigail is impressive.”

“Yeah, well I have the training. And you know, siblings. I’m not an asshole all the time.”

He nods, “So I’ve learned.”

Gavin glances at Abbey sitting on his desk, “She’s pretty easy to deal with anyway. Cute kid. Smart too.”

“I agree.”

He crosses his arms and leans on the wall, “So, uh, what’s the deal?”

Nines frowns, “You’ve already heard my stance. I do not think it’s the best for her to go into the system.”

“So what? You going to take her?” he chuckles.

“I wouldn’t be against the idea. Unfortunately, there aren’t many cases of an android wanting to buy himself a human.”

“You’re not  _ buying _ her.”

“It’s seen as a transaction.”

“Well that’s fucking stupid. She’s not property. You’re trying to keep a kid safe. It’s not your fault you can see all the worst possible outcomes for her and want to prevent it.”

“I appreciate the defense. I wish they shared your opinion.”

“Can’t you talk to those, Jericho guys to help you?”

“Markus and his team are busy dealing with much more important matters than my single, unnecessary issue.”

“Then I’ll talk to Williams. I’ve dealt with her before.”

“Detective, I really don’t think that’s the best idea.”

But Gavin is already on the move. Storming his way past his desk and into Fowler’s office. Not caring what conversation he was interrupting. 

Louder than needed, “Can someone explain to me what’s going on with the little girl sitting on my desk?”

Sarah Williams smiles at him in a sickly sweet manner he’s tired of seeing, “Her name is Abigail Darren.”

“Yeah, I know who she is. I bought her the fruit she’s currently snacking on. My partner’s the one that found her. Would you like to give me some insight on what’s going to happen with her?”

“To put it frankly, she’s coming with us. She’ll be registered somewhere local. Probably the center a few blocks from here.”

“Yeah, okay fine, but what’s the point when there’s already someone waiting to take her?”

“You’re referring to the android?” She does a bad job of hiding her laugh.

He tries his best to keep his anger under control. He needs to be civil to get anywhere in here, “Yeah, I’m talking about the android.”

“We’re thankful for his interest but-”

“But what? He’s gotta pass all the tests you have. He’s a cop. He makes decent money. I’ve been to his place before, I’m pretty sure he sanitizes the ceiling. There’s androids built specifically to take care of kids, I’m sure he can download a program or two. He’s protected me far more times than I deserve. She’s not in any kind of danger with him. Why the fuck doesn’t he get to take her?”

“Children have to grow up with an emotional element. They have to feel loved and cared for. That they’re a priority. There’s no doubt in our mind that the RK900 would take excellent care of Abigail, but there’s things he just can’t provide for her.”

“Because he’s an android.”

She nods at him. 

“I’ll take her then.”

Finally Fowler speaks up, "Reed, do you really think you're in any position to adopt a little girl?"

He wasn't. Not in the slightest. His apartment is a disaster. The spare room would have to be cleaned out crazy fast. Could he even afford to keep her? Would the cats like her? Was he ready to be a dad? To have a whole other human being as his responsibility? He's barely able to keep himself alive. 

If he did this, it would mean a lot more time with Nines. A lot more. Unless he just signed the papers and handed her over, but he had a feeling he's just as stuck on her as Nines is. He's known her 3 hours and already she's sucked him into caring.

He'd be a parent. A top number on an emergency call list. He'd have to go to parent teacher nights. Learn how to cook something other than instant noodles. There would be homework he'd need to help with. First crushes, first relationships, first breakups. There would be interests he didn't understand. Problems he won't know how to solve. He'd probably suck at it.

Glancing out, he spots Nines sitting with Abbey. She's hanging off every word the bot is saying like it's the greatest knowledge she'll ever learn. He's probably just listing the health benefits of grapes at her but she still looks absoluetly thrilled to be a part of his world. He's also never seen his partner so focused on another person before. So determined to keep her attention. 

"Yeah, I'm sure. Get me whatever papers I have to sign."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise there's more.


	3. Reassurance

Nines’ LED is a bright red. It’s flashing. Well more like, flickering, as it processes every thought rushing through his head. Gavin’s seen his partner in some stressful situations and he’s never seen this look. A mix of confusion, fear, and anger.

“You did what?”

Gavin’s not sure why he’s asking. The paperwork was in his hands to read over. It’s pretty standard.

“I signed the papers.”

“Yes, I heard you the first time. What I’m having an issue with is comprehending why you would make such an impulsive, irresponsible, stupid decision. I was beginning to think you’d outgrown the habit.”

“Well you know, you thought it was best.”

“Yes, that she was kept out of a system that would place her in home after home until someone decided they liked her enough to keep her. Not that she should go with you.”

He rips the papers from the androids hands, “What the fuck does that mean? I was trying to do you a favour. Maybe I give a shit about her not getting caught up in that crap too.”

“Detective.”

He’s started pacing, “No. You know what, if you think I’d be such a terrible parent, I’ll just tell them to take her back. I can’t blame you. Why the hell would Reed give a shit about anyone but himself right? Probably can’t even keep a goldfish alive. Nevermind I’ve taken care of two cats for years.”

“Gavin!”

The use of his name stops him. It comes out of Nines’ mouth so rarely. He turns back and snaps, “What?”

“I didn’t mean to insult you. It was a poor choice of wording. I was surprised and upset. You likely put very little thought into the consequences of this action and I thought perhaps you were taking her just to spite me, which Abigail doesn’t deserve. I’m also unhappy with how easily you were approved, but that’s not your fault. I should’ve taken into consideration how you’ve been acting with her and known better. I’m sorry.”

He crosses his arms, “Do you think I’m so stupid that I don’t know you’d be a better parent? I was ready to be where she spent weekends and that’s it. I want the kid to get the best she can and of course I know it’s better that she’s with you more than she’s with me. I would’ve just handed her off to you entirely but now I give a fuck so I want to see her too. And I saw how you were with her. I’m pretty sure you’d shut down or something if they took her out of your sights for a second.”

“You think I would make an adequate guardian?”

“Yeah no shit.”

“Did you really adopt her for me?”

Well when he put it that way. What was he supposed to say to that? Yes, he wanted to keep seeing the dumb look on Nines’ face every time he’s talking to Abbey? 

“Look, I call being the fun one. If she has to have you as a dad, she needs someone to counter all that dull and textbook shit I know you’re going to download. You get school work shit, and I help her with the social stuff.”

“That’s acceptable. I do think there are many more things we’ll need to sort out. First, where is she sleeping tonight? I don’t think it’s unfair to assume she’ll be staying with me, given the state of your apartment.”

“Yeah, that’s fair. I’m going to work on cleaning the place. We’ll work out the other stuff later. I’ll grab her some blankets and pillows from my place.”

“I have plenty.’

“Yeah, but I’ve sat on your couch. No kid is going to want to sleep on that shit.”

Suddenly a small pair of arms are wrapped around his left leg. He looks down and sees his, daughter, clinging to him. Her face digging into the fabric of his pants. He gently pulls her off and kneels down to look at her. 

She’s got the beginnings of tears at her eyes and he panics. Did they leave her for too long? Did something happen? Is she hurt? He calms down only because he knows Nines will see if she is faster than he will.

Softly, he asks, “Hey kiddo, what’s wrong?”

She sniffles, “You’re fighting.”

His heart breaks into a million pieces. He wraps his hands under her arms and lifts her up, maneuvering so she’s resting on his hip. She wraps her arms around his neck. 

“No, we’re okay. Right Nines?” he says.

They both look at the android expectantly. He nods, “Yes. Everything is perfectly fine. We’re just talking about you.”

“Me?” 

“Yeah. You’re going to be spending a bit more time with us than we thought. You’re gonna to go to this big guy’s house tonight but I’m going to bring you some stuff from my place. Is that cool with you?” Gavin explains. She wipes her face on her sleeve and nods. “Why don’t you go back to Aunt Tina. I promise we’re okay, we just have a lot of grown up stuff to talk about.”

“Okay.” she mumbles. 

He lowers her so she can plant her feet on the ground. She moves to hug Nines’ leg quickly then runs back to the break room. They both watch her until she’s sitting back down at one of the tables. 

Gavin catches a few stares from other officers and does his best to hold back from glaring back. He was used to looks, but these were a whole new thing he was going to have to deal with. He wonders if Nines sees them too. 

He turns and is met with a stare that makes his heart jump. Nines was looking at him with a tilted head and a soft smile on his face. It’s the kind of look he would’ve had to beg to get yesterday.

“What’s your problem?” Gavin snaps.

Nines averts his gaze, “Nothing. I was just wondering if you’d be joining Abbey and I for dinner?”

There’s that jump again, “Sure. I’ll, um, bring some pizza. Familiar, comfort food. She’s had a long day.”

“That she has. Good idea Detective.”

“Thanks.”


	4. Pizza

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Please?” she whines.
> 
> It’s been one day and Gavin is already growing weak at this little girl’s puppy dog eyes.
> 
> "It appears you don't have much of a choice Gavin." Nines smiles at him and he crumbles under the pressure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long! This laid half written for a while in a google doc. Hopefully this is worth the wait?

“Alright Kiddo, you ready to head out?” He spins the chair to face her. She nods, “Nines is going to take you home and I’ll meet you there.”

A confused look crosses her face, “You’re not coming?” 

“I just gotta stop by my place and pick up the blankets and stuff. How many pillows do you want?”

“A million!” She throws her hands up for flare.

“Okay, how about we compromise and you get two but they’re my best ones?”

“Fine.” She frowns, dragging out the whine. 

Nines speaks from his side of the tables, “You have the address? You haven’t been there very often.”

Gavin rolls his eyes, “Of course I do. I’m not an idiot.” He turns back to the girl, “Oh hey, Abbey, what do you like on your pizza?”

“Grapes.” she giggles like she’d pulled off the king of jokes.

“You sure? I know a place that’ll do that.” Her eyes widen, realizing the joke has backfired, “Pepperoni it is.” he laughs.

“We’ll see you soon?” Nines asks. 

His partner picks up Abbey and places her on his hip. The sight clicks something in Gavin’s head. This was his future now. He was part of a ‘we’ now. He was going to hear that sentence for at least the next 12 years. Unless he really fucks up. Which was probably inevitable.

“Gavin?” Nines asks. 

He shakes his head, “Yeah! Yeah, I just hope nothing smells too much like the cats.”

“ _ Cats _ ?” Abbey yells, nearly jumping out of Nines’ grasp, “You have cats? Can I see them? Please, please, please?”

“I don’t know kiddo. They don’t really like new people.” he tries to dissuade her.

“Please?” she whines.

It’s been one day and Gavin is already growing weak at this little girl’s puppy dog eyes.

"It appears you don't have much of a choice Gavin." Nines smiles at him and he crumbles under the pressure. 

"Fine. You can ride with me then."

"Yay!" she cheers. 

Nines lets her go and she crawls up into his lap, wrapping both arms around him tightly. He sighs and puts a hand on her head. 

“It’s just a quick visit though. It really is better if you stay at Nines’ until I can clean up.”

“Okay.” She says. 

She shifts off him and grabs one of his hands. Tugging to get him out of his seat. She had a strong grip for a malnourished kid. 

He chuckles, “Alright, alright I’m coming. You’re so strong! No more grapes for you.”

“Cats!” she persists, her only defense. 

He stands and scoops her up into his arms. Gavin sees his partner grab the stuffed bear off the desk and keep it to himself. Probably planning on taking it with him so it finally goes through the washer. 

Walking through the precinct with Abbey in his arms and Nines trailing beside him, he does his best to ignore the looks. The hushed voices and confused faces. He couldn’t blame them, this morning he walked in alone, ready to kill anyone who looked at him the wrong way. Now he’s leaving with an android and little girl? He just hopes the rumors aren’t too bad tomorrow. 

They split ways in the parking lot. The drive home was relatively quiet, other than Abbey asking questions about the cats. Where he got them, what their names were, what they looked like. It was fun telling the stories over again to a new audience. 

He opens the door to the apartment and it’s so much worse than he remembers from just this morning. He wasn’t a complete disaster but it was still barely any better than the house they found her in earlier. Reluctantly, he leads her inside.

“Alright stay here, I’m going to find the blankets and stuff first then I’ll get the cats.”

“Okay.”

He gathers a small collection of options for her to choose from and makes his way back into the living room. Finding her sitting with both Noir and Giz rubbing all over her. She looks overwhelmed by the two felines, unable to properly focus her attention on either one. Trying to pet both at once but they’re restless. He drops the blankets on the couch and sits across from her, taking the orange tabby in his hands. 

“This one is Noir. She’s named after a kind of movie I used to watch a lot as a kid. She’s usually very picky and mean. And that one is Giz. Me and my old roommate found him in an old construction site and - Um, he was chasing mice. Yeah. He looked lost and we ended up taking him home.”

“I like Giz.” She says, petting the cat.

“Not a shocker.” He says, not expecting her to really hear him. “They seem to like you though. Which is good. Since you’re going to be staying here a lot.”

She looks up at him, “Why?”

How does he explain this afternoon to her? 

“Nines will explain. Lets not keep him waiting. We still have to get the pizza. Go pick with blanket you want.” 

He points at the stack on the couch. She releases her hold on Giz and stands. Ponders over the selection for a minute before pulling a black one right from the middle. All the others topple over and off the couch. She brings it over and presents it to him.

“This one.”

“Alright. Solid. Go grab the pillows off my bed.”

“Really?”

“Yes! I told you you’d get the best ones. Go.”

While she runs into hopefully his bedroom, given that he didn’t really explain the layout of the apartment, he folds the blanket. It’s an old one his mom gave him when he first moved to Detroit. Shit, his mom. How the actual fuck was he going to explain all of this to his mom?

His thoughts are interrupted by a soft blow to the back of the head. He turns around to Abbey, dual armed with pillows and a devilish giggle coming out of her mouth.

“Oh no. No. If we do this. I will kick your butt so hard! I am the undefeated pillow fighting champion! Maybe another night.” he jokes, “And we really gotta go get that pizza. You can’t just eat grapes forever. Say goodbye.” 

“Bye bye cats.” She gently places a soft kiss to both of their foreheads. 

The blanket and pillows are piled into the backseat. Abbey follows after. Gavin switches through his music to try to find anything appropriate as they make their way to the pizza.

As he’s helping her out of the car, he says, “This place has the best pizza in the whole city.” 

They enter and a wave of warmth hits them. The smell of garlic and fresh dough fills the air. He lifts her to she can properly see the display cases of slices. There’s no point in getting a full pizza when it’s just the two of them eating. 

“Pick one.” He instructs.

She scans the display and settles on exactly what he expected, “That one!”

“Solid choice kiddo.” He smiles and drops her down to her feet. 

He makes his way to the counter, “Two of the pepperoni.”

“She’s adorable. Yours?” the woman behind the till asks, looking at Abbey, who’s still wide eyed at the array of choices. 

“Uh, yeah. She’s, yeah.” he stumbles. The cashier raises an eyebrow. He clarifies in a quieter tone, “Adopted. Literally today. Both still getting used to it.”

A wide smile grows on her face, “Oh! Well that’s great. You know what, it’s on me.”

Confused, “You sure?”

“Of course. It’d be an honor to treat you to your family’s first meal.” she answers, very sure.

“Oh, well. Thanks.”

“Not a problem at all. Let me get those for you.” 

They walk over to meet up with Abbey. As she’s taking the slices off the trays, the woman asks, “And what’s your name little one?”

“Abbey. That’s Gavin.” She points up at him. 

“Well isn’t that a lovely name.”

“Say thank you.” Gavin nudges her. 

“Thank you!” Abbey shouts.

The woman laughs and hands the boxes to Abbey, “You take good care of these okay? Don’t let them fall or tip. These are a lot more special than you probably realize.”

“Okay.” her grip on the cardboard tightens and she holds them close to her chest. Her focus strong and deadset on her new treasure. 

“Thanks again.” Gavin says.

“Not a problem at all. Good luck. You’ll get the hang of it. Have a good night.”

He nods at the woman and they’re out the door. Back in the car and they’re off to to Nines’. The pull up to a nice, white house in a nicer part of town. He has to watch Abbey walk up because she doesn’t look away from the boxes and almost trips a few times. Linens in one hand, Gavin rings the doorbell with the other. The door clicks open. 

“Hello Abbey, Detective.” Nines says. 

“Hi.” Abbey mumbles, distracted. 

Gavin smiles, “She’s got some precious cargo there.”

“Oh, I see. Why don’t I show you where the kitchen is?” 

“Yes.” Abbey answers.

The trio walk through the house. Gavin stopping in the living room to set up the couch. He can hear the pair talking in the kitchen but not super clearly. Once he’s decided he’s done the best he can making the stiff as a board couch somewhat comfortable, he joins them. 

The slices have been transferred from their boxes to plates. Abbey and, a much cleaner, Zazzy have reunited. Her mission accomplished, she has returned to her talkative self. 

“Gavin, Gavin, Gavin. Look! The pizza!” She pushes the second plate in front of him. 

“They look great kiddo. You did a good job.” He ruffles her hair. 

She’s absolutely beaming up at him and he melts again. Thankfully there was a stool at the island to catch his fall. He plays it off and swings his legs so he’s facing the kitchen, and his partner residing in it. 

Gone is the Cyberlife jacket from Nines’ torso. Gavin thinks back to if he’s ever seen the android without it and comes up blank. The black long sleeve sweater fit him like it was made specifically for him. It probably was. Not a hair out of place, his posture exactly the same, you could tell it was still his partner.

“Your food is going to go cold Detective.” is all Nines says, in a painfully knowing tone.

Gavin drops his head down to his plate. He picks at the pepperoni and places each in his mouth, one by one. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Abbey’s dropped her half eaten slice back onto her plate and has started matching his method. They share a smile before digging into their now cheese slices.


End file.
